I love writing about topics that spark my curiosity, which dovetails nicely with what I am covering here: Millennial workplace trends, corporate renegades, and pop culture. I grew up in Oregon, and currently live in New York City. I love all things business and admire the entrepreneurs who are able to transform their dreams into profit.

Behind every company name is a story. The chosen name to reflect the company’s ethos and mission. Then there’s the discarded selection. The name that almost was. Here are a few examples of what companies could almost have been named:

FreshPet: The brand that sells refrigerated pet food was originally conceived as Dr. Connor. “We thought we needed credibility since we were starting a new pet food segment, like a veterinarian endorsing a company,” says FreshPet’s Scott Morris. Morris and his two founders soon had a slight change of heart. “Doctor sounded too medical. We didn’t want people to think we sell medical [products],” says Morris. Therefore, the doctor became a teacher. The company incorporated as Professor Connor and developed products, packaging, and advertising with that name. Then, Morris had a flash of inspiration: “We were a new company and no one had ever heard of or understood what we were,” says Morris. “Refrigerated dog food? What does that mean? What is Professor Connor? We don’t have any marketing muscle, so we needed to do something explainable. FreshPet [as a name] helps to educate consumers.”

One awkward predicament was that one founder, at the time on vacation, was extremely attached to the Professor Connor brand. Since he was on vacation though, it was out of office, out of mind. Morris and his co-founder switched the name and replaced all signage, packaging, and advertising before the third founder returned from vacation. “He even walked by our office since it had a new sign,” laughs Morris.

All are now happy with this new name, yet the FreshPet name does carry its own unique challenge. “We did realize there might be long-term danger in naming ourselves after a category. Or that it might be too generic,” says Morris. But, he says, “We don’t mind being the Kleenex, Xerox, or Saran Wrap. We own the segment.”

Johnny Cupcakes: Specialty retailer Johnny Cupcakes took its name from an inside joke. When founder Johnny Earle worked at a Boston music store, his coworkers would regularly bestow nicknames that played off of his first name. “When I was late, they would call me Johnny Come Lately. If I was nice to a customer, they would say I was Johnny B. Goode,” says Earle. Then, one day Earle decided to mock those with chain belts, shaved heads, and cross and bones tattoos by designing a T-shirt that replaced the skull with a cupcake in the iconic crossbone image. Fans soon started coming to the store to buy these “cupcake” T-shirts, and each time, Earle’s coworkers would call out for him by yelling “Johnny Cupcakes.” Eventually, all of the other Johnny nicknames fell by the wayside. And the unexpected demand for this T-shirt design was the catalyst for Earle to quit his retail job and launch his own brand under that moniker.

Just Born Quality Confections: The candy brand behind Peeps, Mike & Ike, and Hot Tamales is often assumed to have a religious affiliation, since Peeps is closely associated with Easter. (Fun fact: it takes six minutes from “soup to nuts” to make one Peep.) “Easter candy is associated with a Christian holiday,” says Just Born’s Matthew Pye. “But the owners are Jewish.” The privately-held candy brand was established by Sam Born, a Russian immigrant who opened up a candy shop in Brooklyn, New York in 1923. “The shop featured a sign that said, ‘So fresh it’s almost as if it [candy] was born that day,” says Pye. This motto and the fact that Born was the family name formed the basis for Just Born Quality Confections. Sam Born was also an inventor; he developed the machine that inserts sticks into candy to make lollipops, as well as a device that makes shavings now known as chocolate sprinkles.

Best Western: In 1946 the name Best Western applied to a group of western hoteliers who created the brand Best Western Motels. All locations were approximately a tank of gas away from each other, says Best Western’s Todd Sommers. In fact, the hotels referred travelers to each other via a printed travel guide and map. In 1964, The Best Eastern Motels was formed, and eventually merged with the western motels. Although the name was quite literal in the beginning, the brand had developed quite a bit of equity with travelers over time, says Sommers. So, why Western? Ultimately, the Western brand had more recognition, affinity, and had been around longer than the Eastern brand.

The Terri & Sandy Solution: The names of advertising agencies typically fall into one of two categories: straight-forward and serious (Omnigroup and BBDO) or nonsensical and entertaining (Wexley School for Girls). When executives Terri Meyer and Sandy Greenberg decided to leave Draftfcb to launch their own agency in 2010, they spent a lot of time analyzing their options. Nothing clicked. “Meyer and Greenberg [our last names] sound like a law firm,” says Sandy Greenberg. At one point, they seriously considered Mad Girlz, but questioned whether using the term “girls” would be credible enough to compete against large (and male-dominated) international agencies. The name of the company eventually came from their clients, says Greenberg. “For 25 years, we were known as Terri and Sandy. People would ask for us as a combo deal. It became our brand without us realizing it,” she says.

And Sandy and Terri didn’t quibble over name placement. Visually, Terri looked better before Sandy in their logo. Plus, Greenberg received a far better honor than Meyer in the annals of naming rights. “Sandy Greenberg” became a character in a series of novels by best-selling author James Patterson, who was their boss at J. Walter Thompson.

C3: This Kansas City-based marketing agency originally launched as Creative Consumer Concepts, primarily because company founder Bob Cutler felt the most effective company names should identify their purpose. It rolled off the tongue and was serviceable, says Cutler. In today’s landscape, however, the speed of business and technology mean that this name is too long and too interchangeable for consumers to type into search engines. “Staying relevant is so critical, especially when you are a marketing agency. Think about all those fast names, Apple, Nike, Starbucks, Samsung and so on. Big names are gone. Law firms and banks are the last to join in,” he says. Hence, in 2012, Cutler rebranded his agency from Creative Consumer Concepts to C3. Although there are several other C3-named businesses in the U.S., Cutler isn’t worried that clients will confuse his firm with, say, live event promoter C3 because he says those that need his services know where to find him.

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